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else be damned!"
At the same time, the Chasidim
aren't interested in becoming part of
the local community.
On their way to shul one Shabbat
morning, one member of the Chasidic
community admonishes Bloom for say-
ing hello to some non-Jewish residents
of Postville: "The goyim will always be
the goyim, no matter how nice they are
to you. So what's the point?"
The tensions eventually come to a
head when the town tries to annex the
land where the slaughterhouse is locat-
ed, which would force the Chasidim
to pay taxes to the town. The
Chasidim threaten to leave if the
annexation passes.
Bloom uses the tension during the
annexation battle to tell his story.
Along the way, he discovers some
compelling stories: what happened at
the deathbed of a longtime Postville
resident, a non-Chasidic Jewish doc-
tor; and a murder committed by two
young members of the Chasidic com-
munity
But his own personal story — and
views — emerge just as vividly as the
battle in Postville.
Bloom is not on a personal search
for religious meaning. He seems to be
at ease with the spiritual life he has
created for his family.
When asked about it, he emphasizes
tikkun olam, or repairing the world.
He and his family belong to a Reform
congregation where they live in Iowa
City, and his son was about to cele-
brate becoming bar mitzvah.
Like a good journalist, he doesn't pick
any sides in the struggle over annexation.
He says he enjoyed sharing the same
Yiddishkeit and sense of humor with
the Chasidim — and he compliments
their "wonderful belief."
But by the end of the book, he
appears to prefer the local Iowa resi-
dents to the Lubavitch.
He feels more at ease in Iowa, writ-
ing that the members of his family will
never become Iowans, but Iowa has
become our home."
More controversially, he makes com-
parisons between the Lubavitch and
Nation of Islam leader Louis
Farrakhan — whom he covered for
that are sure
the Los Angeles Times
to rankle some readers.
When questioned about the com-
parisons, Bloom responds by making
an analogy that appears to describe his
journey:
"A black author could have gone to
interview Farrakhan and done a story,
and in many ways it would have been
a fight for his soul." ❑
°BATH
10Prolz
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Eton Diamond, author of the
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